Stereoscopic viewer



May'16, 1944. E, w. sPARL|NG STEREOSCOPIC VIEWER Filed July 23, 1941 IHIIHHH ILL/077W SFA/QL /A/G,

INVENTOR Patented May 16 1944 STEREOSGOPIG VIEWER Elliott W. Spal-ling, Los Angeles, Calif., assigner, by mesne assignments, to Milton Schwarzwald,

Los Angeles, Calif.

Application July 23, 1941, Serial No. 403,690

Claims.

This invention relates to and has for an object the provision of an improved stereoscopic viewer by means of which ocularly spaced pictures and images may be viewed in the third dimension with clearness, sharpness of detail and faithfulness which is not possible with ordinary stereol. scopes and stereoscopic pictures.

This invention comprehends the provision of a stereoscope constructed of modern materials,

for use, with an improved and `extremely economical slide carrying the pictures to be viewed. and accurately designed .to present the pictures in ocularly spaced relation before the eyes of a 1 viewer so that when the lenses of the stereoscope are properly positioned before the eyes the pictures on the slide will, contrary to usual practice,

due to the spacing of the lenses from the pictures,`

nomical and modern case or body formed of.

plastic material and housing electric batteries and lights for illuminating the pictures which are carried on a transparent slide and preferably in color, so as to provide a maximum elfect. My apparatus is especially designed for viewing positives produced by modern color photographybut may be also used for viewing other pictures of transparent or translucent character which are produced by other` methods.

Other objects may appear as the description progresses.

l have shown a preferred form of apparatus in the accompanying drawing which may be more or less modified to meet varying conditions of use within the scope of the claims, in which:

Fig. l is a perspective View of an assembled viewer embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same in section on line @-2 of Fig. 3; i

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation of the viewer on line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the ocularly spaced and arranged lenses constituting a prime feature of my invention; r

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a picture slide particularly adapted for use in my improved viewer;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a light diffusing element, as seen from the front and adapted to be positioned between a source of light and the pictures;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the partly diffusing means as seen from the rear; and

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary elevation of a contact unit for regulating the direction of light to the pictures.

Brley described, my apparatus includes: a case or body preferablycomposed of a pair of mating members A and A' having a rabbeted joint l and adapted to be separably held together for use as by means of one or more spring clips 2 attached to one of the members A or A by rivets or screws 3 and having their free ends bent to form 'hooks which seat in notches 5 of the other case member and thus serve' to hold the two case members together.

Member A, the rear member as shown, is arranged to support one or more electric batteries B in electrical contact attheir inner terminals `t and 1 (if more thanone battery is used). and their outer terminals 6 and l in contact with spring contact portions extended from the extremities of a bar Q which serves to support a pair of lamps lll held in sockets il. Said lamps are connected through their sockets Il with one side of the battery circuit by means of bar 9 while their terminals l2 are commonly connected with a. bar i3, so that the lamps and battery cells are thus connected in series. One of the terminals 8 is attached at a foot 8a to an insulating block tb which, in turn is attached to bar 9 and such .terminal 8 has a spring contact 8e formed so as to overlie a lug 9a on bar 9. 'I'he top of case member A has a cut out switch portion A1 formed above contact de and adapted when depressed to engage contact 3c and to move the same into electric contact withthe end of lug 9a so as to complete the .circuit of lamps lll. Bar i3 is mounted on bar 9 with an insulating bl'ock 9b between said bars.

Held between the case members A and A' at the joint l thereof I provide a light diffusing member including a frame l5 which is suitably arranged with ocularly spaced apertures I5 behind which is held in said frame a pair of opalite glass discs l@ disposed forwardly of the lampsi i@ for diiiusing light therefrom upon light transmitting pictures il carried by a slide C. The discs 5% are held-in frame M by deforming portions of the frame, as at Ma on the rear side of the frame. The top of. the case adjacent the joint l is formed with a transverse slot It through which the slide C is inserted in the case to viewing position and removed, asby means of a tab it formed on the upper margin of the slide, as shownin Figs. 1 and 5. It may be noted that slide C is formed of a thin ilexible light transmitting material, preferably of Celluloid or plastic and the pictures are adapted to be held therein in magnifying lenses 26.

Moreover slides to which this particular form of viewer are not adapted may not be used and accordingly the usefulness and efficiency of the apparatus will not be impaired.

The front section A' of the case has two separatlely shielded viewing compartments separated by walls as at 23. which are provided with ocularly spaced apertures .24 into which are fittedv and in which are held eye pieces 25 carrying `Said lenses 26 are ocularly spaced to correspond to the normal spacing of the eyes while the opalite glasses I and pictures I'I are spaced apart transversely of the case at a lesser distance, as shown in Fig. 4, to correspond to thefocal angle of the normal eyes and depending upon the axial distance between the lenses 26 and the pictures I1, thus preventing distortion, excess strain on the eyes when using the viewer and providing a maximum of delity in the pictures viewed.

The form of slot I8 and the abutting edges of the case member A and frame I4 correspond to the cross sectional form of the slide B Whereby theslide is closely held in viewing position and a. minimum of light is admitted through said slot, thereby confining the light from lamps I 0 within the case and rendering the pictures I1 clearly and sharply visible. Frame I4 is removably held in position by the case members A and A' when said case members are locked together in operative position byy means of the 4 latches 2.

The front side of frame I4 has a vertical rib I-lb which conforms to and is adapted to slidably receive the rear channelled side of a rib 2l on slide C and is also provided at the bottom of the rib Mb with a proiecting tab I4c which affords a means.of removing the frame Il when the case section A 4is detached from section A.

When the case is open, it will be apparent that after the removal of frame I4 the lamps I0, bars 9 and I3 and batteries B may be removed as a unit for any purpose.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3 a mask D may be heid inthe front section A' of the case and provided with an opening Di through which opening the pictures I1 are viewed. Other modications oi' the form of the several cooperating elements of the viewer may be made as necessity may require.

What I claim, is: f 1. A stereoscopic viewer comprising: a case having separable front `andback members, ocularly spaced eye pieces carried by the front member, a light diiusing member supported onthe case at the junction of and held in position by the engagement or said separable members and having ocularly spaced light transmitting elements held thereon, illuminating means wholly supported in the back member, said case having a transverse aperture in the top thereof formed at the junction of said separable members through which a dual picture slide may be inserted and removed from operative position with respect to said lig'ht transmitting elements and said eye pieces'.

2. A stereoscopic viewer as characterized in `claim 1 and including: means formed on said light diiusing member and engageable with complementary means formed on said slide for guiding the slide into and for holding the same in viewing position.

3. A stereoscopic viewer as characterized in claim 1 wherein said light diffusing member is provided with a vertical rib intermediate the light transmitting elements for engagement with a complementary groove on the slide, so that when the slide is inserted in the case the pictures thereon will be focally alined` with the iight transmitting elements and the eye pieces.

4. A stereoscopic viewer comprising: a case having a pair of separable members, one of said members having a pair of ocularly spaced eye pieces thereon, the other case member having a pair of lamps mounted therein, a light diiusing member removably supported in said case vin a transverse planeintermediate the lamps and the eye pieces and arranged with light transmitting elements focally aimed with the eye pieces, and means on adjacent margins of the case members for engagement with opposite sides ofthe diffusing member for holding the diffusing member in operative position when the case members are attached together, said case having an aperture through which a slide may be inserted and removed from viewing position adjacent the diffusing member.

5. A stereoscopic viewer as characterized in claim 4 including means on the diffusing member engageable with a portion of the slide for alining the pictures of the slide with the eye pieces and the light transmitting elements of the diffusing member.

VELLIO'I'I' W. sPAnLING. 

